The designers have to prove that their patterns of desert, woodland, and transitional camouflage stand up to scientific analysis and field trials over the next nine months.

The Army is also interested in a pattern for equipment and gear to cross over all three environment color schemes. This means soldiers won't have to switch their equipment to match what they're wearing in different environments.

One of the elite teams vying for a possible Army contract is a small, yet formidable company named Kryptek, founded by two combat veterans who served together in Iraq. They're competing against respected firms ADS (teamed with Hyperstealth Biotechnology), Brookwood Companies, Crye Precision, and a Government team from the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center.

Some of the new patterns in the running look so cool, you have to remind yourself that you're not supposed to be visually intrigued. The whole idea of camouflage is to disappear and enhance tactical effectiveness. Up close, the blend of colors and odd shapes can be pretty stunning, but at a distance, the human eye is often tricked into sending a different message to the brain. That's just a big rock, move on.